During a visit to Maputo on the outward journey, a constructive discussion with Eduarda Zandamela Mungoi took place, who is the adviser of the Minister of industria e Commercio. She is very interested in the foundation and is friends with Graca Machel, the widow of Nelson Mandela and will see if a partnership is possible with its foundation Fundação development e comunidade, fdc.
Additionally, we will see if there is a possibility for Mosagri, PoM, FdC andTthe Hunger Project to work together to create more awareness on schools and hospitals and possibly collaborate through epic centres.
We’ve also spoken to Clara Oleivero of The Hunger Project and met with Mathieu Joyeux, from UNICEF. He will explore the possibilities and try to coordinate a collaborate donation, including the World Food Programme, the FAO, and Save the Children etc. of Moringa products to all kindergartens and hospitals in Mozambique. He was very excited as malnutrition as a major problem for young children.
The Escolinha
Our first official meeting took place on Ilha de Mozambique, where Antoine was present, who will supervise the construction. Additionally, our partners Vasco, Corporaçao of Portuguesa and Carlos, of Helpo were there.
So far, not much has been done, only some materials were selected while logistics were arranged as well. The excuse was the heavy rainfall and the devaluation of the currency, which led to increased costs of the materials. The plan is to start the construction as soon as possible and as soon as the first class room is ready, we will start with the activities for the children. We won’t start with the school program yet, but will introduce teachers that will set-up some easy classes like painting, sports etc. Afterwards, we hope to conclude the rest of the building shortly, bearing in mind that we’re still operating in Africa J. The goal is to finish two classes, a teacher room and a library by May 15th, 2016. In the meantime, we’re borrowing a container from MoSagri to store all our materials.
In the week of February 8th, a workshop was given by The Pearl of Mozambique for parents and children on Ilha de Mozambique. The reception was amazing with a small performance and local music. We started off with a small explanation about the Moringa tree and show all benefits it could have. Furthermore, we showed how easy it is to use Moringa in their daily diet and increase their nutritional intake. To ensure further participation, all children planted two seeds in their own garden near the school, together with a slightly bigger tree. Now it’s a matter of taking care of the plants and harvest when the time is right. On June 1st, Mozambique will have the day of the Children, and big festivities are planned once more. Hopefully at the new school in Lumbo.
The Art Event.
In August, The Pearl of Mozambique will organize an Art Event. First off, we would like to create more publicity and awareness for talented African artists and their impressive art, but it would also introduce local artists to different forms and styles of art, while it should also stimulate tourism in the long-term. We intend to have workshops held by various artists, for which anyone can subscribe or just watch to see how these artists work. This will happen on various locations, like the museum, the gardens, the beach and in Lumbo. From August 10th onwards, a big exposition will be held in Palacio Museum on Ilha de Mozambique. To host this Art Event in this beautiful museum, we’ve had a meeting with the museum’s director. We were received by 8 people, while the meeting was very official and according to protocol. This is a great start and a promising beginning. They’ve committed to the Art Event and would like to be involved actively going forward, including distributing flyers, invitations, the opening ceremony etc. Additionally, they will invite the minister of Culture, Education and Development and ensure media coverage. We’ve look at all space available at the museum and there are some great rooms for workshops and expositions, while the big garden can also be used by artists, both painting and sculpting. The main exposition will be held in the beautiful courtyard, at the museum and the cathedral. Now the whole organization has top priority. We expect artists from Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Sout-Africa, Brazil and Europe to attend – a great multi-cultural environment.
Sewing Workshop
In order to improve employment and coherently generate income for the Pearl of Mozambique, a few local tailors have started creating purses from the beautiful capulana materials. Obviously we’ve started off slowly to discuss designs and operations, but the quality appeared to be very good, while they are also very fashionable. Going forward, we probably want to develop more products with these materials and eventually store, show and sell them in our own cultural centre.
For the time being, current developments are going well and the tailors seem to be very happy to generate some income. The bags and purses are now being sold on Ilha de Mozambique to tourists, while you can also order them only by e-mailing us: pearlofmozambique@gmail.com. De costs are €15,00 and delivery is around May 2016.The purses all have zippers and several pockets inside, while every purse is different, hand-made and unique. A good chunk of the revenues will go to the local tailors, while a part of the profits will also go the foundation. This money is much needed to continue to develop the cultural centre and the Escolinha as more books, furniture and other materials should still be bought and/or made over the next couple of months.
